Gaylord 9-10 patience, key hits spark comeback victory

EAST JORDAN — Not road construction, an elevated heat index, the threat of storm clouds or even a six-run deficit could prevent Gaylord from earning a District title and a trip to the State Finals.

The Gaylord 9-10 All-Stars defeated Alpena 8-7 in Saturday’s District Final in East Jordan, a game that was an uphill battle for Gaylord from the beginning.

“Nobody played a great game,” said Gaylord coach Rance Charboneau. “But we eventually got to their pitching.”

In a 1-2-3 top of the first inning, the Gaylord bats were stung by hard-throwing Alpena pitcher Lucas Crosby.

In the bottom half of the first inning, the Alpena team proved to Gaylord that it would not be as quiet as in the 10-0 shutout defeat the team suffered back on July 1 to Gaylord. A double to left field helped the Green and White to post the first run of the game.

Later, Charboneau would comment on the showing of Alpena.

“You have to give them credit. They were a much better team than the Alpena we faced earlier,” he said. “I knew they would be but they played a great game.”

The second inning ended scoreless in what looked like a defensive battle. Brendan Mendolia stole a base hit away from Alpena with a diving catch in right field.

Gaylord would get to the scoring sheet in the third, thanks to a base hit by James Miller. It would be one of six hits for the Gaylord offense. It was Miller’s first of two hits on the day and he ended the game as Gaylord’s only multi-hit player.

Alpena was quick to answer with a run in the bottom of the third and rolled in the fourth, racking up five runs. Gaylord pitcher Blake Charboneau left the game after pitching 3 1/3 innings. Only three of the seven runs posted against Gaylord were earned.

Matthew Wilson would take over on the mound and with the help of a tricky catch by Bradley Kowalsky at shortstop, Gaylord was able to end the Alpena threat.

The fifth inning went by with the Gaylord offense held in check by Crosby and good defensive play in the Alpena field. Led by Wilson on the mound, the Gaylord defense did the same in the bottom stanza.

A quiet Gaylord bench looked on as the sixth inning began. Reaching his limit, Crosby left the game. Charboneau would comment on the effect this would have on the game.

“We wanted to test their pitchers,” he said. “We went up there taking the first strike.”

The strategy would work. Cycling through two pitchers in the inning, it was clear that Alpena was out of arm strength.

The comeback was aided by six walks and two runs scored on passed balls. As the Gaylord bench began to rise a little more with each base runner and each run scored, before Alpena knew what hit them the score was 7-6.

With two outs, catcher Parker Rey hit an RBI single to right-center field. Mendolia’s patience at the plate drew a walk and scored the go-ahead run for Gaylord. The inning ended 8-7 with Gaylord ahead.

The comeback was completed in a lights-out bottom of the sixth by Wilson with the final play a diving grab he made, sliding down from the pitcher’s mound.

“I’m not that emotional of a guy, but when you get to tell these kids that they are going to the State Finals and that they get to go to a (Detroit) Tigers game and be on the field, you can see it in their faces. It means everything to them.”

The team will travel to Harper Woods in northwest metro Detroit to begin the 12-team State Finals tournament. They will also watch Friday night’s Tigers game and get to march on the Comerica Park field as representatives of District 8 in a Little League parade around the field prior to the game.

Saturday begins pool play in the tournament with Gaylord taking on Bay City Northwest, Grosse Pointe Park and White Lake.